In order to retain the healthy skin, moisture retention is essentially, and many external compositions for skin have been developed for the purpose of moisturizing. In addition, as the feeling of use for an external composition for skin, the smoothness and no stickiness are demanded.
Humectants have been intensively studied, an example of a humectant used for many utilities such as a skin lotion and a milky lotion includes glycerin. Glycerin has an effect of improving rough skin in addition to a moisturizing effect.
However, in order to enhance the moisturizing effect and the rough skin improvement effect, an amount of glycerin to be incorporated must be increased and, as a result, there are problems that the composition becomes unstable, the usability is deteriorated and, when applied on skin, it is repelled by sebum, and the compatibility with skin is deteriorated.
As a humectant other than glycerin, polyols such as 1,3-butylene glycol, propylene glycol, polyethylene glycol, sorbitol, xylitol and the like have been known.
These polyols have the better feeling of use, for example, have little sticky feeling as compared with glycerin. However, there are problems that they have lower moisturizing and rough skin improving effects and, like glycerin, when applied on skin, they are repelled by sebum and the compatibility with skin is deteriorated.
On the other hand, in an external composition for skin, a refreshing agent, representatives of which are menthol and camphor, is widely used for imparting a refreshing feeling to skin, alternatively, incorporated for a purpose of improvement in swelling, deteriorated circulation or a mucosal swelling, local resolution, anti-itching, remission or the like.
Menthol and camphor exert the effect by volatilizing from a base of an external composition. There is a problem that, when the concentration thereof is low, the effect does not last and, when the concentration is increased in order to enhance the durability, skin stimulation is too strong to generate a smart feeling and redness.
Recently, there are many products which are applied on skin near eyes or near mouth for the purpose of improving and preventing swelling and bags around eyes, or shaking off sleepiness or improving nasal congestion. Like this, when applied on a comparatively delicate site near a mucosa, since an amount of the refreshing agent to be incorporated is limited, it is difficult to obtain a product having a high durability of the refreshing effect. Of course, in such an external composition for skin, the feeling of use is also a very important factor, and smoothness, moist feeling, no stickiness and the like are required.